Authors

Scott Adams

Nitpickers found lots of problems with the Peter Principle, but on whole it worked. Lately, however, the Peter Principle has given way to the "Dilbert Principle." The basic concept of the Dilbert Principle is that the most ineffective workers are systematically moved to the place where they can do the least damage: management.

Source: The Dilbert Principle, Chapter 1 (this chapter originally appeared in the May 22, 1995 Wall Street Journal and led to creation of the book)

Thousands of people have told me workplace stories (mostly through e-mail) that are even more absurd than the examples above. When I first started hearing these stories I was puzzled, but after careful analysis I have developed a sophisticated theory to explain the existence of this bizarre workplace behavior: People are idiots.